Wednesday, May 03, 2006

The Epitome of Toughness

Jay Dobyns was the poster boy of Arizona football in 1984, earning a spot on the cover of the team's media guide. And why not? His last-minute, game-winning catch in 1983 lifted the Wildcats to a stunning 27-24 victory over UCLA. What has happened to him since is nothing short of amazing. Dobyns became an undercover agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and on his first assignment in 1987 he was shot in the back at point-blank range in Tucson. Dobyns should have died, but he recovered and was transferred to Chicago. In the Windy City, Dobyns was hit by a car; the man driving the car was shooting at him with a machine gun. He later infiltrated the Calabrese organized-crime family and the Hells Angels, and according to a new book, "Angels of Death — Inside the Biker Gangs' Crime Empire," Dobyns remains a wanted man, with the Hells Angels and Aryan Brotherhood having enlisted hit men to find and kill the former receiver.

5 comments:

Anonymous
said...

'Jaybird' Dobyns is a heroic badass dude. The fact that he chooses to continually work in S. Az. after all these years is a testament to this man's huevos. I worked a couple of cases with him as a fugitive investigator in Pima County almost 20 years ago, and was amazed that he was still alive then. *Retired Tucson Police Detective*

jay dobyns and this guy queen were not the first to infiltrate as an atf. if they think back and are honest there was an undercover agent, atf that went by the name of leo in the late sixties and early seventies